Abstract
The increasing presence of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) parents in school communities across the nation poses a growing challenge for schools and families and signifies a critical issue for advocates working to create safer and more affirming K-12 school environments. Despite the growing urgency of this issue, little is known about the school-related experiences of LGBT-parent families. This chapter summarizes research findings on the school-related experiences of families with LGBT parents and examines the key challenges faced by these parents, such as the prevalence of anti-LGBT bias and behavior in schools and its impact on parents and students. This chapter also discusses research findings and resources related to strategies that LGBT parents can employ to create a safer school environment, such as selecting what school to send their child to, being involved in the school community, and advocating for a safer school climate. Lastly, this chapter identifies the specific school-based interventions that stakeholders can advocate for to improve school climate for LGBT-parent families, for both the students and the parents.
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Editors and Affiliations
Resource List
Resource List
Resources for Parents
Is This the Right School For Us?
GLSEN’s Is This the Right School For Us? is a guide to assess school climates for LGBT parents of elementary-aged children (K-6). http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/news/record/1674.html.
Opening Doors: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Parents and Schools
The Family Equality Council’s Opening Doors resource includes a wide array of information for both LGBT parents and educators. An abbreviated version is also available, called Back to School Tool: Building Family Equality in Every Classroom. http://www.familyequality.org/site/PageServer?pagename=resources_publications.
Rainbow Report Card
The Family Equality Council’s Rainbow Report Card is an online-based, interactive tool that has LGBT parents answer questions about their children’s school and then generates a report with custom recommendations. http://www.familyequality.org/site/PageServer?pagename=resources_publications.
Resources for Policy and Legislative Advocacy
GLSEN’s Policy and Legislative Resources
These tools are designed to provide the kinds of information necessary to launch and sustain effective campaigns for safer schools laws and policies, and are available at http://www.glsen.org/policy.
Enumeration: A tool for advocates explains some of the major reasons why anti-bullying and anti-harassment laws and rules that use enumerated categories are better at protecting students, educators, and school systems.
Model District Anti-Bullying & Harassment Policy highlights key points regarding enumeration, complaint procedure, professional development, and student training.
Model State Anti-Bullying and Harassment Legislation explains the policy objectives for each section of the Model, and presents some key points and alternatives to consider. There is also commentary throughout that will help stakeholders tailor the model language to the specific needs of their state, while keeping the original intent of the legislation intact.
Model District Policy on Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Students contains a model policy with explanatory notes on the range of issues schools may face related to transgender and gender nonconforming students. This resource was created by GLSEN in partnership with the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE).
Resources for Educators
Lessons and Curricula
GLSEN’s Education Department offers free curricula and lesson plans for educators to use with elementary, middle, and high school students. These resources provide a framework for facilitating classroom discussions and engaging students in creating safer schools for all, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression: http://www.glsen.org/educator.
Ready, Set, Respect! GLSEN’s Elementary School Toolkit
The GLSEN toolkit was developed in partnership with the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
Ready, Set, Respect! contains suggested lesson plans that focus on name-calling, bullying and bias, LGBT-inclusive family diversity, and gender roles and diversity. The templates are designed for teachers to use as either stand-alone lessons or for integration into existing curriculum content or school-wide anti-bullying programs. The toolkit also contains helpful tips for teaching more inclusively and intervening in bullying and promoting respectful recess playtime and physical education.
Safe Space Kit
GLSEN’s Safe Space Kit is designed to help educators create a safe space for LGBT youth in school. This guide provides concrete strategies for supporting LGBT students, educating about anti-LGBT bias, and advocating for changes in your school. The Kit also shows how to assess the school’s climate, policies, and practices and outlines ways to advocate for change inside the school.
No Name-Calling Week
No Name-Calling Week (NNCW) is an annual week of educational and creative activities focused on ending name-calling in K-12 schools. The NNCW site provides educators with LGBT-inclusive lesson plans and extensive bibliographies (divided by school level). http://www.nonamecallingweek.org.
BookLink
Organized by grade level, GLSEN’s BookLink makes it easy to find LGBT-themed/inclusive books and videos to use in the classroom. http://www.glsen.org/booklink.
For example: Benjamin, J., & Freeman, J. (2009). And baby makes four. Motek Press.
Resources for Students
Jump-Start Guide for Gay–Straight Alliances
This guide consists of eight self-contained sections designed to help students bring fresh and creative energy to leading their student club. The resources take you through the process of establishing or reestablishing a Gay–Straight Alliance, identifying the student club’s mission and goals, and assessing your school’s climate. http://www.glsen.org/jumpstart.
Day of Silence
On the National Day of Silence hundreds of thousands of students nationwide take a vow of silence to bring attention to anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying, and harassment in their schools. http://www.dayofsilence.org/.
Additional Resources
General Books and Information
COLAGE Bookstore. http://www.colage.org/bookstore/.
Research
GLSEN’s Research Department supports the organization’s mission by conducting original research, evaluating GLSEN programs and initiatives, and creating resources that document anti-LGBT bias in education (K-12 schools). GLSEN Research reports include the following:
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2009 National School Climate Survey: The Experiences of LGBT Youth in Our Nation’s Schools
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Playgrounds and Prejudice: Elementary School Climate in the United States, A Survey of Students and Teachers Year One Evaluation of the New York City Department of Education Respect for All Training Program
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From Teasing to Torment: School Climate in America, A Survey of Students and Teachers
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Shared Differences: The Experiences of LGBT Students of Color in Our Nation’s Schools
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Harsh Realities: The Experiences of Transgender Youth in Our Nation’s Schools
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The Principal’s Perspective: School Safety, Bullying and Harassment
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Involved, Invisible, Ignored: The Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Parents and Their Children in Our Nation’s K-12 Schools
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GLSEN Research Briefs
All available at: http://www.glsen.org/research.
Films
Chasnoff, D., & Klausner, K. (Directors). (1984). Choosing children (film). Cambridge Documentary Films.
Chasnoff, D., & Cohen, H. (Directors). (1996). It’s elementary: Talking about gay issues in schools. New Day Films.
Dupre, J. (Director). (1998). Out of the past: The struggle for gay and lesbian rights in America. Allumination.
Gilomen, J. (Director). (2008). In my shoes: Stories of youth with LGBTQ parents. COLAGE.
Holsten, G. (Director). (2003). Gay pioneers. Glennfilms.
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Byard, E., Kosciw, J., Bartkiewicz, M. (2013). Schools and LGBT-Parent Families: Creating Change Through Programming and Advocacy. In: Goldberg, A., Allen, K. (eds) LGBT-Parent Families. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4556-2_18
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